February Word Walls + Freebie
Thematic Word Walls for February
Get kids excited about February with thematic word walls! Word walls in all shapes and sizes are a great way to enhance your print rich classroom. Help your kids build background knowledge by creating and using thematic word walls in your classroom. Create your own thematic word walls, check out Grab & Go: February Word Walls, create a portable word wall station, or have students create their own desk sized set of February word walls. Here are few ideas that you can use with your own kids! If you are still in need of more great ideas for February, check out my pinterest board Creative February.
Themes For February
Using thematic units, during learning, is a great way to engage your
students. Thematic units help kids make and understand connections to
the real world. Thematic units allow you to teach new vocabulary in a
real and meaningful way. Here are a few themes that I like to use during
February.
Dental Health
February is National Children’s Dental Health Month. A perfect time to learn about teeth, dentistry, and keeping your teeth healthy. Head over to the American Dental Association to see their resources and ideas for Dental Health month!
Want more thematic ideas about dental health? Check out these hands-on learning acitivities centered around teeth.
Valentines
Valentine’s Day is a lot of fun with young children. Explore vocabulary centered around Valentine’s Day and Cupid, identify all types of Valentine treats, and sequence the steps in making a Valentine.
Need more Valentine-inspired fun? Check out these activities & freebies:
Groundhog Day
Groundhog’s Day is fun! Who can resist a furry round rodent that’s afraid of his own shadow?? Check out more ideas on my Pinterest board: Wintry Mix of Teaching Ideas.
George Washington & Abraham Lincoln
President’s Day is a holiday in the USA that celebrates the past and
present presidents. It’s a great time to revisit and compare/contrast
some of the great leaders of this country. Two favorites to
compare/contrast are George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.
Super Bowl
My son is crazy for all things sports! When I asked him what he would
choose as a theme for February, he immediately said, “The SUPERBOWL!”
There are tons of kids out there that would be uber-motivated to write
about this football event. It is a perfect time to predict and write
about their predicted winner.
Dinosaurs
One of my favorite themes is everything dinosaurs. Check out tons of pin-worthy ideas on this All About Dinosaurs board on Pinterest. Here are some more fun dinosaur activities:
- Dinosaur Literacy and Math Activities
- DIY Dinosaur Feet, by Rainy Day Mum
- Make Your Own Dinosaur Skeleton (with toilet paper rolls!), by Your Modern Family
Create Your Own Thematic Word Walls
An easy way to start with thematic word walls is to make your own!
While it is tempting to create the word wall by yourself, resist the
urge! A teacher-made word wall may be more aesthetically pleasing and
much neater; however, students are more invested in charts that they
helped to create.
Involve Your Students
Encourage your students to brainstorm together. Have them access their own background knowledge on a concept or theme. This allows you to assess student understanding of the concept or theme, as well as, to plan out the thematic learning for the future. When creating a thematic word wall, encourage students to identify all the words they know that relate to the specific theme. If students are unable to identify any words, or have not picked out the specific words required, aid them in coming up with the desired words.
Legible Word Walls + Pictures
To make the word wall most usable for your students, you may want to write the words. This will make all the letters legible and large. Involve your students, by having them illustrate each word or matching pre-printed/pre-drawn picures.
Use chart paper for large word walls that are visible around the classroom, or use regular-sized paper that can be bound into a “February Word Walls” book. Kids can then use the portable word wall book in the writing center, or it can travel around the classroom. Make multiple classroom copies of the “February Word Wall” book and many children can use them as needed.
Grab & Go February Word Walls
Another option is to use ready-made portable word walls. I use my Grab & Go February Word Walls in a variety of ways.
Hang From A Mini-Anchor Chart Stand
The large format in the February Edition is perfect to hang from a
mini-anchor chart stand. This allows you to hang a large number of word
wall charts on the stand. Students are able to flip through the charts
to access the words that they need. Place the stand in your writing
center, reading center, word work center, and/or allow students to carry
and move the chart stand around the room. Students are then able to
access the thematic words wherever they need them.
Create Word Rings
Use small metal rings to create thematic word lists for your
students. The rings make the word walls portable and accessible to all
students. Hang the word rings in various places around the room, or put a
small word ring set at student tables. Students love to use these
portable word walls. Organization is so easy with the word lists on
rings! Read more about how I set up my word rings here.
Word Wall Binders
Another option is laminating the thematic word walls, punching holes, and including in a 3 ring binder. Throw in some dividers and you have a thematic book of words. Students will love using this reference binder to access all the previous word walls.
Portable Word Wall Station
Short on space? No problem- Create your own portable word wall
station! All you need is a tri-fold board (like the board used in
science fair projects), plastic hooks with adhesive backs, and word
lists hung on metal rings. Head over to this blog post
to get the nitty gritty details. You will love the portability of this
word wall station AND that it can be folded up and placed out of sight
when not in use.
Want all the Grab & Go Monthly Word Walls? Head over to my TPT store and grab them at a discount. Print, laminate, and hang right in your classroom. Your kids will love the pictures and words and you will love their growing independence!
Free Student-Created February Word Walls
Looking for another option, why not try student-created word walls? You can combine the student created word walls ready-made or class-made word walls. Then, have kids make their own version of the word wall at their seats. They can use the thematic word walls for brainstorming, writer’s workshop, or any other purpose during your thematic unit. Give the personal word walls a try for FREE!
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